Blood in urine/ struvite crystals

[Ricothebully]

Hi Rico had been having blood in his urine. I only noticed it because there was snow. He is active, eating and drinking. I took him to the vet and they did a urinalysis. The vet said his ph was 8 and the urine is very concentrated. He also said there were struvite crystals but no infection. After the test I didn’t see anymore blood until a week later it started again. I took him back to the vet and did an x ray but the X-ray was normal, no stones. The vet suggested a prescription diet for the crystals. I didn’t get it because I think that food is crap. Not sure what to do here. The blood in the urine seems to come and go sometimes weeks apart with no other symptoms. Any advice?

 

[Bulldog2001]

Hi Rico had been having blood in his urine. I only noticed it because there was snow. He is active, eating and drinking. I took him to the vet and they did a urinalysis. The vet said his ph was 8 and the urine is very concentrated. He also said there were struvite crystals but no infection. After the test I didn’t see anymore blood until a week later it started again. I took him back to the vet and did an x ray but the X-ray was normal, no stones. The vet suggested a prescription diet for the crystals. I didn’t get it because I think that food is crap. Not sure what to do here. The blood in the urine seems to come and go sometimes weeks apart with no other symptoms. Any advice?

My dog had struvite urine crystals over a year ago, that was there for about a year cause it was trial and error to realize the food I was feeding him was high in grains and legumes causing the too high urine PH of 8.0 for my dog.
Its been almost 2 years actually since we got rid of them thru diet and supplements.

Yes it’s painful for them.

Absolutely don’t use the vet food, it’s all fillers and doesn’t get rid of it and causes more health issues!!!

What are you feeding him???

You need to acidify his urine and increase his water intake to make him pee more often to flush out those crystals before they form a stone.

Fixing his diet and adding a supplement (sometimes diet alone will fix it).

Carbs increase the urine PH causing the struvite crystals. I actually had to get dog urine strips and test him every morning to know what worked for him.

Ideally the urine PH should be 6-7 no lower or higher.

What are you feeding? What are you using as treats?

Are you in Canada? Do you have Thrive brand Bladder support supplement Available to you? Or Four Leaf Rover brand Red Rover berry blend available to you??

Are you able to try raw diet??

If you need to feed kibble, there is good options that aren’t high in carbs and legumes or grains. Then you can just add a supplement to keep the PH from going too high.

I would definitely recommend AVOIDING the vet food, it’s all garbage, the Hills, Purina and Royal Canin brands are all garbage and cause more health issues and don’t even fix the urine issue.

The key is to correct the urine PH down to neutral 6-7 and make sure he is drinking enough water and peeing enough to flush them out of his bladder to prevent stone formation.
But usually you have to switch diet and add supplement to acidify the urine for them to go away and not come back. That too high Ph can cause a UTI if untreated and if there’s crystals that will cause it to scratch and irritate the bladder wall causing the blood and pain. I’m not a vet, I’m just sharing my experience and what I know cause my dog had the same issue and same too high PH.

Also foods with added vitamins and minerals can cause these crystals too.

Meat acidifies the urine which is what you want for struvite crystals, carbs and starch(grains and legumes) make PH higher which is what you need to avoid for Struvite crystals.

I have been thru this with my dog, I’m happy to help!

 

[Ricothebully]

My dog had struvite urine crystals over a year ago, that was there for about a year cause it was trial and error to realize the food I was feeding him was high in grains and legumes causing the too high urine PH of 8.0 for my dog.
Its been almost 2 years actually since we got rid of them thru diet and supplements.

Yes it’s painful for them.

Absolutely don’t use the vet food, it’s all fillers and doesn’t get rid of it and causes more health issues!!!

What are you feeding him???

You need to acidify his urine and increase his water intake to make him pee more often to flush out those crystals before they form a stone.

Fixing his diet and adding a supplement (sometimes diet alone will fix it).

Carbs increase the urine PH causing the struvite crystals. I actually had to get dog urine strips and test him every morning to know what worked for him.

Ideally the urine PH should be 6-7 no lower or higher.

What are you feeding? What are you using as treats?

Are you in Canada? Do you have Thrive brand Bladder support supplement Available to you? Or Four Leaf Rover brand Red Rover berry blend available to you??

Are you able to try raw diet??

If you need to feed kibble, there is good options that aren’t high in carbs and legumes or grains. Then you can just add a supplement to keep the PH from going too high.

I would definitely recommend AVOIDING the vet food, it’s all garbage, the Hills, Purina and Royal Canin brands are all garbage and cause more health issues and don’t even fix the urine issue.

The key is to correct the urine PH down to neutral 6-7 and make sure he is drinking enough water and peeing enough to flush them out of his bladder to prevent stone formation.
But usually you have to switch diet and add supplement to acidify the urine for them to go away and not come back. That too high Ph can cause a UTI if untreated and if there’s crystals that will cause it to scratch and irritate the bladder wall causing the blood and pain. I’m not a vet, I’m just sharing my experience and what I know cause my dog had the same issue and same too high PH.

Also foods with added vitamins and minerals can cause these crystals too.

Meat acidifies the urine which is what you want for struvite crystals, carbs and starch(grains and legumes) make PH higher which is what you need to avoid for Struvite crystals.

I have been thru this with my dog, I’m happy to help!

I am in Canada. I have been feeding him Acana singles. He doesn’t do well with raw. Lots of vomiting and weight loss.

 

[Bulldog2001]

I am in Canada. I have been feeding him Acana singles. He doesn’t do well with raw. Lots of vomiting and weight loss.

Are you open to trying a different kibble so the crystals don’t keep coming back?? The legumes and carbs is the cause and possibly some of the added vitamins minerals. I have heard of Acana causing the struvite crystals a few times.

Natures Logic is similar to Acana and very good for the sensitive dogs. But it’s even more premium than Acana(and also Acana was bought out, so quality will be low quality soon), but the Natures Logic has probiotics in it, and is synthetic free, all whole food based.
No legumes or grains.

It uses meat and millet(which is not considered a grain, and is good for sensitive dogs) and also some berries. But it’s much lower in carbs than Acana.

They have Rabbit, Lamb, Beef, Pork, Sardine and some other options for proteins to try.

I would recommend you try the Natures Logic brand kibble, and there is a supplement I used for my dog, it’s Thrive Bladder Support that is made in Ontario, lots of pet stores carry it and you can order it online in Canada.

That supplement actually helps break down the Struvite Crystals and stones and soothes the lining of the bladder and prevents the Struvite crystals from coming back, and it prevents UTI but it corrects the urine PH to neutral. My dog was on it, pH was 8 and it went down to 6.5 or 7.

So that thrive bladder support supplement as well as diet change to Natures Logic(if possible), and keeping him drinking lots of water and peeing often is definitely something to try to get rid of the Struvite crystals and prevent them from returning.

 

[Ricothebully]

I was thinking about trying the open farm ancient grain food but I didn’t know that the grains would cause issue or legumes. I just find it odd that the blood in the urine comes every 2 weeks or so, and it is just a little at the end of his pee, is this normal for crystals? It’s not constant blood. He also doesn’t strain or seem to be in any pain. I was told that most struvite crystals are caused by infection, but the vet said there is no infection just a moderate amount of struvite crystals. His x-ray was clear too. I can definitely get the thrive supplement, how long would he have to take it? I will also look into the natures logic food as well. He does have some allergies, yeast issues and a sensitive stomach. Thanks for your input, I appreciate it.

 

[Bulldog2001]

I was thinking about trying the open farm ancient grain food but I didn’t know that the grains would cause issue or legumes. I just find it odd that the blood in the urine comes every 2 weeks or so, and it is just a little at the end of his pee, is this normal for crystals? It’s not constant blood. He also doesn’t strain or seem to be in any pain. I was told that most struvite crystals are caused by infection, but the vet said there is no infection just a moderate amount of struvite crystals. His x-ray was clear too. I can definitely get the thrive supplement, how long would he have to take it? I will also look into the natures logic food as well. He does have some allergies, yeast issues and a sensitive stomach. Thanks for your input, I appreciate it.

Yes grains and legumes can cause the crystals.

My dog never had blood in his urine from the crystals. But he was peeing lots and everywhere because his bladder was inflamed form the crystals.

His wasn’t caused by UTI and he didn’t have stone either(X ray showed no stones), the grains and legumes cause the PH to go too high=struvite crystals and more risk for UTI.

Sometimes crystals won’t cause any blood, every dog is different.

I think the natures logic would be better for his yeast and allergies, and it’s minimal carbs and no legumes or grains to cause crystals.


Probably 1-2 months on the Thrive bladder supplement but less IF the food lowers the PH. The only way to know is if you test it with dog urine strips.

Keep me updated

 

[Ricothebully]

Yes grains and legumes can cause the crystals.

My dog never had blood in his urine from the crystals. But he was peeing lots and everywhere because his bladder was inflamed form the crystals.

His wasn’t caused by UTI and he didn’t have stone either(X ray showed no stones), the grains and legumes cause the PH to go too high=struvite crystals and more risk for UTI.

Sometimes crystals won’t cause any blood, every dog is different.

I think the natures logic would be better for his yeast and allergies, and it’s minimal carbs and no legumes or grains to cause crystals.


Probably 1-2 months on the Thrive bladder supplement but less IF the food lowers the PH. The only way to know is if you test it with dog urine strips.

Keep me updated

Yes grains and legumes can cause the crystals.

My dog never had blood in his urine from the crystals. But he was peeing lots and everywhere because his bladder was inflamed form the crystals.

His wasn’t caused by UTI and he didn’t have stone either(X ray showed no stones), the grains and legumes cause the PH to go too high=struvite crystals and more risk for UTI.

Sometimes crystals won’t cause any blood, every dog is different.

I think the natures logic would be better for his yeast and allergies, and it’s minimal carbs and no legumes or grains to cause crystals.


Probably 1-2 months on the Thrive bladder supplement but less IF the food lowers the PH. The only way to know is if you test it with dog urine strips.

Keep me updated

I will, thanks for all your help. I will try the food and the thrive supplement.

 

[Bulldog2001]

I will, thanks for all your help. I will try the food and the thrive supplement.

Your very welcome!

Hopefully with the supplement and the diet change and making sure he drinks enough water, the crystals will be gone soon.

 

[Ricothebully]

Your very welcome!

Hopefully with the supplement and the diet change and making sure he drinks enough water, the crystals will be gone soon.

Well I found the thrive supplement but I can’t find the nature’s logic food anywhere. No one has it in stock. I am just outside of Toronto. Rens Pet Depot used to regularly stock it so I went there and they said they will no longer be carrying that brand. That explains why the shelf was always empty. Not sure what to do now.

 

[Bulldog2001]

Well I found the thrive supplement but I can’t find the nature’s logic food anywhere. No one has it in stock. I am just outside of Toronto. Rens Pet Depot used to regularly stock it so I went there and they said they will no longer be carrying that brand. That explains why the shelf was always empty. Not sure what to do now.

Can they special order it for you? Some places will do that even if they aren’t gonna carry it anymore.

That’s odd!

Do you have Carna 4 available to you? It’s oven baked but doesn’t use much of the sweet potato or legumes to hold the kibble together(very minimal though), because it’s Oven baked and synthetic free(natures logic is also synthetic free too), but because this Carna 4 is oven baked, it’s more expensive. It also has probiotics in it too. Proteins come in Venison, Goat, Lamb , Duck, Fish. And Most ingredients are organic.



Do you have N&D brand available to you?? They have a Boar, Duck, Lamb, Quail, cod, salmon, venison, chicken for proteins. I would try the “pumpkin” or “Ocean” line, and avoid the ones with grain in it cause the grains definitely can cause the struvites, but the other formulas without grains don’t use much of the legumes like Acana does.

Hopefully you can find some of these brands available to you.

 

[helsonwheels]

Nyala as a pup had struvite crystals. Came n go non stop. Had enough n I decided to cook her meals. Completely disappeared in a week ish. Never came back. She basically ate turkey which boiled for 8hrs cause I wanted the broth to top her meals, frozen peas, green beans n sweet potato once in a while in the meat. Did it for a few months n she went back on kibble. also Acana. But the struvite crystals never returned. Few yrs later she ended up on raw. No issues either. One broth is very powerful for the gut. Great stuff‼️

 

[Zedsded]

We, went through a similar thing with our first bully Dudley, he needed an emergency op to remove the stones.
He was on kibble up until he got stones, we were told that kibble could of been part of the problem because it’s dry and can be a cause of the urine becoming more concentrate.
We switched to raw after his op and bought the PH strips to keep an eye on his urine PH level and he stayed clear from then on.

 

[Ricothebully]

Can they special order it for you? Some places will do that even if they aren’t gonna carry it anymore.

That’s odd!

Do you have Carna 4 available to you? It’s oven baked but doesn’t use much of the sweet potato or legumes to hold the kibble together(very minimal though), because it’s Oven baked and synthetic free(natures logic is also synthetic free too), but because this Carna 4 is oven baked, it’s more expensive. It also has probiotics in it too. Proteins come in Venison, Goat, Lamb , Duck, Fish. And Most ingredients are organic.



Do you have N&D brand available to you?? They have a Boar, Duck, Lamb, Quail, cod, salmon, venison, chicken for proteins. I would try the “pumpkin” or “Ocean” line, and avoid the ones with grain in it cause the grains definitely can cause the struvites, but the other formulas without grains don’t use much of the legumes like Acana does.

Hopefully you can find some of these brands available to you

Can they special order it for you? Some places will do that even if they aren’t gonna carry it anymore.

That’s odd!

Do you have Carna 4 available to you? It’s oven baked but doesn’t use much of the sweet potato or legumes to hold the kibble together(very minimal though), because it’s Oven baked and synthetic free(natures logic is also synthetic free too), but because this Carna 4 is oven baked, it’s more expensive. It also has probiotics in it too. Proteins come in Venison, Goat, Lamb , Duck, Fish. And Most ingredients are organic.



Do you have N&D brand available to you?? They have a Boar, Duck, Lamb, Quail, cod, salmon, venison, chicken for proteins. I would try the “pumpkin” or “Ocean” line, and avoid the ones with grain in it cause the grains definitely can cause the struvites, but the other formulas without grains don’t use much of the legumes like Acana does.

Hopefully you can find some of these brands available to you.

I have found a store that can order the natures logic. I was wondering if I should add their canned food to the kibble, would that help with the moisture?

 

[Ricothebully]

Nyala as a pup had struvite crystals. Came n go non stop. Had enough n I decided to cook her meals. Completely disappeared in a week ish. Never came back. She basically ate turkey which boiled for 8hrs cause I wanted the broth to top her meals, frozen peas, green beans n sweet potato once in a while in the meat. Did it for a few months n she went back on kibble. also Acana. But the struvite crystals never returned. Few yrs later she ended up on raw. No issues either. One broth is very powerful for the gut. Great stuff‼️

When cooking for them, how do you know how much to feed? Do you have any recipes?

 

[Ricothebully]

I have found a store that can order the natures logic. I was wondering if I should add their canned food to the kibble, would that help with the moisture?

Is the kibble really tiny, he has trouble with choking on tiny kibble?